1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to electrical power generating apparatus for generating electrical power utilizing wave action and gravity.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Apparatus utilizing the natural stored energy of wave and/or tidal motion to generate electrical power is known in the art. These are several patents which disclose various power generating apparatus and methods.
Rainey, U.S. Pat. No. 4,208,878 discloses an ocean tide energy converter comprising a large buoyant tidal piston provided with a chamber and one or more valves that can be rapidly opened or closed by preprogrammed actuators to either allow water to flood the chamber, or to discharge water already contained therein. The tidal piston is connected to a large hydraulic ram whereby the rise and fall of the tidal piston due to the change in tide compresses hydraulic fluid inside the ram and is discharged to an accumulator and then to a hydraulic motor to drive an electrical generator.
At low tide, the tidal piston chamber is filled with air and the ram piston is locked against vertical movement. After the tide has risen, the ram piston is released and the buoyancy of the tidal piston compresses the fluid in the ram. At a predetermined level, the actuators open the valves of the chamber to discharge the air and allow water to enter the chamber and the ram piston is again locked. At low tide, the ram piston is released and the weight of the water filled tidal piston pulls the ram piston down to compress the fluid in the lower chamber of the ram.
West, U.S. Pat. No. 4,218,192 discloses a pressure source which develops a stream of liquid under pressure as a consequence of the rise and fall of the water surface. The apparatus comprises a cylinder mounted on the floor of a body of water having a reciprocating piston disposed therein which compresses liquid in the chamber below the piston. A central shaft member extends upwardly from the piston to a buoyant weight member which floats on the water surface. A conduit through the shaft member contains a check valve to establish one-way communication between the pressurized liquid and an electrical generator. An inlet port and check valve allows liquid to enter the chamber below the piston directly from the body of water or from a separate recirculating system. A release valve in the conduit prevents lowering of the buoyant weight member unless the water surface is below a reference level.
Tornabene, U.S. Pat. No. 4,073,142 discloses a wave action apparatus comprising a series of offset rows of spaced apart reciprocal floats mountably positioned at predetermined distances relative to one another such that radially-outwardly traveling turbulances resulting from upwardly and downwardly reciprocation of the floats coincide with one another and with current and/or wave water forces to result in amplified strokes of reciprocation of the floats, and the process of subjecting the floats to such forces, and pooling the energy of a plurality of such floats into a common driving force.
Lapeyre, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,818,704 and 4,384,212, and Snook, U.S. Pat. No. 1,025,929 disclose apparatus comprising rotating helical members to convert wave action into useful energy.
McLaughlin, U.S. Pat. No. 868,798, Coon, U.S. Pat. No. 891,671, and Kunkel, U.S. Pat. No. 1,381,712 disclose apparatus comprising rotating propeller members to convert water current to useful energy.
The prior art in general, and none of these patents in particular, disclose the present invention for generating electrical power from wave action which comprises a platform having a deck portion suspended above the water surface on upwardly extending upright members and a power grid assembly disposed on the bottom surface of said deck provided with means for generating electrical power by pressurizing a fluid as a consequence of the rise and fall of a wave passing therebelow.